


Airports, Philosophy, and Power Outages - Oh My!

by amberesinite



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Drabble Collection, F/M, Zutara Week, Zutara Week 2020
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-16
Updated: 2020-08-16
Packaged: 2021-03-06 03:41:08
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 1,203
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25936834
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/amberesinite/pseuds/amberesinite
Summary: A series of modern AU drabbles for Zutara Week 2020Ratings and warnings listed at the beginning of each chapter
Relationships: Katara/Zuko (Avatar)
Kudos: 17





	1. Day 01 - Reunion

**Author's Note:**

> Rating: G  
> Warnings: None

Katara looks down at her phone for what feels like the millionth time. _11:05 pm._ His flight should be arriving any minute now…

When Zuko was invited back home for his cousin’s wedding, Katara was excited for him. Ecstatic, even! Now she just misses curling up next to him in bed and making snide comments about the news together over morning coffee.

_”Flight 3750 arriving from Chengdu is now disembarking at Gate 23. Flight 3750 arriving from Chengdu is now disembarking at Gate 23.”_

Every young black-haired man exiting the plane makes her heart skip in anticipation. When she finally spots the touch of pink above his left cheek, disheveled and bleary-eyed, her heart feels so full it might burst.

“Zuko!” she calls out.

Her target’s head snaps up, scanning the waiting area until he spots her and rewards her with a sleepy smile.

“I missed you so much,” she mumbles, crashing into his armpit. “Did you have fun?”

He chuckles. “I did, but not nearly as much fun as I would have had with you.” He squeezes her tighter before pulling back to give her a quick kiss.

“Let’s go home. I’m _exhausted_ …”

“I can imagine!” she squeezes his hand and leans into his arm. “…I’m glad you’re home.”

He smiles into her head and returns her squeeze. “Me too.”


	2. Day 02 - Counterpart

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating: G  
> Warnings: None

It always blew his mind how easily Katara adapted to change. It took him nearly an entire month to become accustomed to living with Katara’s family for the holidays last year, yet making herself comfortable at his family’s beach house took her a mere weekend. She was like water – her thoughts, her speech, her movements all cohesive and eternally flowing.

Zuko tries to channel his inner Empedocles and the four roots from his undergrad philosophy class. The ancient Greeks categorized each “element” as hot, cold, dry, or wet. If his memory served him correctly, water was cold and wet, which would make its counterpart hot and dry – fire. 

_Hah. How fitting._ His uncle always warned him that he was too hot-tempered for his own good. But then again, the Chinese considered fire and water to be two parts of one whole – yin and yang, darkness and light, moon and sun.

She giggles at his look of intense concentration, returning him to the present. When he meets her gaze and sees her beautiful smile, he can’t help but think that despite being water, she’s the fire that illuminates his life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [Insert that old-ass meme of the seal yelling "GAAAAAAAAAY" here]


	3. Day 03 - Fuse

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating: T  
> Warnings: mild sexual content

_“You stood on the shoulders of geniuses to accomplish something as fast as you could, and before you knew what you had, you patented it, packaged it, slapped in on a plastic lunch box, and now you want to sell it.”_

_“You don't give us our due credit. Our scientists have done things no one could ever do before.”_

_“Your scientists were so preoccupied with wheth—"_

The TV goes black with a _blip_ , and they suddenly find themselves surrounded by darkness. Zuko looks around at the streetlights, still shining brightly in contrast to the dim room he and Katara are sitting in.

“Ugh, that damn engineering student upstairs must have blown the fuse again!” Zuko growls. “I’ll go check the basement.”

He attempts to stand when Katara grabs his sleeve and pulls him back down to the couch.

“Or…” she purrs playfully, “we could just stay here…”

Her hand trails down his chest to the waistband of his sweatpants as she leaves small nips and kisses on his neck.

“I think—” Zuko doesn’t even remember what he was about to say because Katara has taken the liberty of climbing into his lap and seductively wiggling her hips. God, this woman will be the end of him…

“What was that, Zuko…?” she says oh so innocently as she tugs his shirt up over his head and nibbles on his lip.

He flips her over and tugs down her shorts and panties, gleefully watching her twitch as his facial hair tickles her belly and thighs as he plants his own kisses on her.

“Nothing at all,” he smiles.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't own Jurassic Park, but I wish I did


	4. Day 04 - Celestial

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating: G  
> Warnings: None

They’re _supposed_ to be looking for Saturn.

He says “supposed to” because _he’s_ definitely not. And it’s not because it’s a cloudy night – because it’s actually a beautifully clear night – or that there’s too much light pollution – because they’re actually out in the middle of a cornfield in the countryside – but because he’s standing next to the most beautiful woman in the world. Even bundled up in three layers of shirts and sweaters and jackets overlain with scarves and hats and mittens, she has all the radiant beauty of the stars and more. The pink of her wind-chapped cheeks puts the whirlpool galaxy to shame, and the sparkle in her eyes when she spots Saturn is brighter than any celestial body.

Maybe _just maybe_ , he thinks, astronomy class isn’t so bad after all.


	5. Day 05 - Hesitancy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating: T  
> Warnings: Language

He looks down at the ring he’s been fidgeting with for the past 45 minutes. Rose gold with a square-shaped low-set aquamarine center and a double twist studded with small diamonds. He’s never been so nervous in his life. He looks at the clock – 5:46. Katara and her family will be here any minute now.

Zuko is suddenly incredibly self-conscious. Would she have wanted a more private proposal? What if she wanted a huge set-up with all of her friends and family around?? What if the small family dinner he’s planned isn’t grand enough???

 _Breathe in… breathe out…_ It’s okay, Zuko. You’ve been planning this for years. She’ll be happy with any proposal, any ring, any location—

 _Ding-dong_.

_Shit shit shit shit shit. She’s here. Her father’s here. Holy fuck. Okay. Calm down, Zuko. Just like you rehearsed._

She opens the door, and for a moment, he’s silent. Her curls are perfectly styled to frame her face, and she’s wearing an incredible blue and red patterned silk dress with a plunging neckline and a fit that accentuates her hips. She smiles at him like he’s all that she can see.

Zuko is so flustered that he forgets his previous hesitancy and immediately gets down on one knee, presenting the diamond-adorned ring with a hasty, “Will you marry me?”

Katara freezes. Did he catch her off-guard, or is she just not ready to accept his proposal? _Shit_ , he should have waited until they were alone after dinner, maybe then she would—

A twinkling laugh graces the room as she pulls him into the tightest hug she can muster, repeating “Yes, yes, yes! A million times yes!” for what feels like forever until the words register in his brain and his mouth collides with hers for a kiss of love and passion and relief and—

“Ahem.”

 _Whoops._ He pulls away and glances up at Hakoda, who towers over both of them.

“I was under the impression that this was a _family_ dinner.”

“Uh, yes sir. Dinner will be ready any minute now.”

Zuko can feel the heat in his cheeks as he leads Katara’s family to their seats at the table, his beautiful girlfriend— no, not his girlfriend any more, his _fiancée_ – grinning at him stupidly like he’s the not just the _only_ thing in the world, but the _best_ thing in the world.


End file.
